On my show tonight at 10pm, I lay out a way to completely get rid of the deficit.

I don't claim to be a budget expert. But others, such as Chris Edwards at Cato and Stuart Butler at Heritage, are. They found lots of serious cuts. My staff found a few more, and put together a list that would completely balance the budget:

We spend about $400 billion on public welfare. That is insane. How much of that reaches the “poor”?

My proposal would merge all welfare bureaucracies into a single entity. No more free phones, no more section 8, no more food stamps etc. Just a monthly cash payment you have to show up to recieve (and be subject to background checks and surprise home “audits” to see if you are actually poor)

10
posted on 07/31/2011 12:53:55 PM PDT
by GeronL
(The Right to Life came before the Right to Happiness)

Not really. We need to bring all troops home from everywhere. Close and give up almost all 165 overseas bases. Quit being the worlds policeman. Let these people fight, kill whatever, they got along before us, they can get along now. We need to take our troops, put them on the southern border and seal it. We need to take care of our won country, save it, and tend to our own hemisphere and let the rest of the world do whatever. We can no longer afford to do so.

We can no longer afford it. Most that strategy is rooted in Pentagon Plans of the late 1930’s onward. It's all outdated. Practically we cannot keep up the level of spending we have for defense. Our war now is with Terrorist who have no rooted place. So much of our strategy was for a two ocean war that is now out of date. China may be the next enemy, but what kind of war will it be? Certainly not millions of men fighting a land battle or really even a full scale navel war. We have to take care of this country and solve our problems now and close that southern border.

-- Our basic war strategy is to never fight a war on American soil. The way we do that is by maintaining troops overseas as a tripwire. --

The other strategy is a combination of sturdy geographic boundaries (sea); strategic deterrent (ICBM with nukes); and a citizenry that will be armed and restive against insurgents. Most of what our armed forces are doing overseas is "nationbuilding," (more like plantation building for the elites) and that of other people's nations.

As for war on our soil, I dare an invader to bring it on. The way things are going, the enemy is within, and our resources are without.

In the War of 1812, when the British burned Washington D.C. to the ground, we learned our lesson to never fight a foreign power on American soil. Since then, the Monroe Doctrine has served us well and we have avoided much of the death and destruction which the rest of the world has periodically suffered.

I prefer that hostiles not even contemplate invading America and the best way to do that is to keep our troops close by to those who might consider doing America harm.

Obamas 2009 Supplemental Appropriations for Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Pandemic Flu was revised and passed by the full committee.
It gives billions http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2009/05/1...
of U.S. taxpayer dollars to countries and entities that support Sharia law and/or harbor, hide and support those who want to destroy the U.S. and our allies.
Read the summary from David Obeys office that was quietly released last week with nary a word from any media.

$3.6 billion, matching the request, to expand and improve capabilities of the Afghan security forces

$400 million, as requested, to build the counterinsurgency capabilities of the Pakistani security forces

Afghanistan:$1.52 billion,$86 million above the request

West Bank and Gaza:$665 million in bilateral economic, humanitarian, and security assistance for the West Bank and Gaza

Jordan:$250 million,$250 million above the request, including $100 million for economic and $150 million for security assistance

Egypt:$360 million,$310 million above the request, including $50 million for economic assistance,$50 million for border security, and $260 million for security assistance

Pakistan:$1.9 billion,$591 million above the request

Iraq:$968 million,$336 million above the request

Oversight:$20 million,$13 million above the request, to expand oversight capacity of the State Department, USAID, and the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan to review programs in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq
Lebanon:$74 million

International Food Assistance:$500 million,$200 million above the request, for PL 480 international food assistance to alleviate suffering during the global economic crisis

Refugee Assistance:$343 million,$50 million above the request, including humanitarian assistance for Gaza. Funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency programs in the West Bank and Gaza is limited to $119 million (Note: Gaza = Hamas)

Disaster Assistance:$200 million to avert famines and provide life-saving assistance during natural disasters and for internally displaced people around the world, including Somalia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, the Middle East and South Asia

Peacekeeping:$837 million for United Nations
peacekeeping operations, including an expanded mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a new mission in Chad and the Central African Republic

Department of Justice:$17 million, matching the request, for counter-terrorism activities and to provide training and assistance for the Iraqi criminal justice system
Obama gives your tax dollars to rebuild Muslim mosques around the worldhttp://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/... #

ACCORDING TO THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION WILL GIVE AWAY NEARLY $6 MILLION OF AMERICAN TAX DOLLARS TO RESTORE 63 HISTORIC AND CULTURAL SITES, INCLUDING ISLAMIC MOSQUES AND MINARETS, IN 55 NATIONS. See the State Department document here.http://exchanges.state.gov/media/pdfs/office-...

22
posted on 07/31/2011 1:39:40 PM PDT
by patriot08
(TEXAS GAL- born and bred and proud of it!)

The Monroe Doctine involved a geographic limitation. We have NOT been following it.

We have been following the Monroe Doctrine since its inception. In the 1800s, the threat to us was from foreign powers using South and North America as a base to attack us from. Since then, we have made it progressively harder for foreign powers to do that by first winning the Mexican-American War, then purchasing Alaska and ultimately at the end of the 19th century by annexing Hawaii.

However, technology has made the world smaller and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are not the barriers they used to be - as was perhaps best demonstrated when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

As a result, because technology has made the world smaller, the geography covered by the thinking behind the Monroe Doctrine has progressively gotten bigger.

-- However, technology has made the world smaller and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are not the barriers they used to be - as was perhaps best demonstrated when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. --

Taking a bite out Hawaii is a far cry from taking the continental US.

And as history demonstrated, America's power in retribution is formidable. That, without more (as long as it is recalled and credible), is a deterrent.

Which countries, in your mind, are credible threats to the 50 US states?

Mind you, I am all for a strong defense. And, as you appear to be a student of military, infantry is what it takes to hold a country. Not that I want a war on US soil, but what country in its right mind would mount a war against heavily armed and angry citizens?

Which countries, in your mind, are credible threats to the 50 US states?

I can't predict the future, but 10 years ago a group of people in Afghanistan planned and carried out an attack that resulted in the death of 2,900 Americans on American soil. After that happened, we didn't fight the attackers here in the United States. Instead, we took the fight to them in Afghanistan. And ultimately, we killed their leader in Pakistan earlier this year. If we didn't have troops overseas, it would have been pretty hard to do that stuff.

Only if we bring all our troops back from everywhere and put those remaining after cuts on the border and at seaports. Highly accurate MIRVed nukes would stay, 'cause if it ain't worth nukes, it ain't worth fightin' over!

;^)

29
posted on 07/31/2011 2:33:18 PM PDT
by JimRed
(Excising a cancer before it kills us waters the Tree of Liberty! TERM LIMITS, NOW AND FOREVER!)

Eliminate foreign aid? How is the Palestinian Authority gonna make it without $600,000,000 of our taxes? How is that great friend of America, Egypt, gonna make it without a few billion dollars of our cash? or China, or Cuba? or Nigeria?

33
posted on 07/31/2011 2:46:04 PM PDT
by count-your-change
(You don't have be brilliant, not being stupid is enough.)

I was just at a government site and the typical laziness is there just like every other fed operation. The fed. manager was saying how he was in on a meeting of a crew of workers, and the boss was pleading with them to “at least give me 4 hours of work a day and we can get this back on schedule.” But they are all union so impossible to fire, and the boss could get charged for harrassment if he does any more than plead. Although layoffs are coming.

Oh - they “work” 10-hour days with Friday off. So out of a 10 hour day, perhaps 1 to 3 hours of actual work gets done.

As a start, firing 50% of the workers next week should be done. Give the rest of them a month’s notice half of the remaining folks will also be canned. That would go a long way at shrinking the debt.

Oh, by the way. My work was being done near a huge facility that is being torn down. Out in the desert, but somehow affects the indians religous practices. Millions and millons being spent to tear down old buildings that no one ever sees. Heck - just leave it there and let it decay - turn it into a museum of what greatness was once like in America. But no - have to bring it back to it’s natural state of sand and sage brush.

1. Cap all federal employees, elected and appointed, to $100K/year.
2.No pension, except what you put into a 401k, with a 6% match.
3. Limit staffers to 3, including one in district/state.
4. All unspent campaign funds are turned over to the Treasury.

37
posted on 07/31/2011 3:01:57 PM PDT
by NTHockey
(Rules of engagement #1: Take no prisoners)

“This way a family of four that makes $40k pays zero tax.
This way seniors and fixed income people will end up paying little to no tax and still the top 10% of americans will pay over 90% of the tax.”

What part of that seems like a good idea ?? EVERYBODY needs to pay painful tax rates to get EVERYBODY to care about how wasteful government is. You’ve just turned a majority of the populace into freeloaders who couldn’t care less what government does because they only benefit from additional government and don’t actually pay for it.

We already have a system that punishes success and rewards failure, and you want to make it worse.

42
posted on 08/01/2011 12:24:03 AM PDT
by Kellis91789
(There's a reason the mascot of the Democratic Party is a jackass.)

$475B in cuts presumably comes from eliminating all the Overseas Discretionary Operations (Iraq&Afghan) of $160B and reduces the $388B (Procurement of $112B, R&D of $76B, Operation and Maintenance of $200B) to only $73B.

The $250B remaining after cuts still pays for all Military Personnel $138B, plus the $73B above, plus another $40B miscellaneous. Probably that $138B on personnel would drop considerably without Iraq & Afghan. The FY2000 Defense budget was only $267B including all the foreign bases. Inflation to 2011 would make that $267B into $349B today, yet we are over double that.

So really, closing foreign bases and the concomitant personnel reduction only has to produce a $100B decrease compared to our inflation adjusted FY2000 $349B budget.

It doesn’t sound all that impossible if we assume closure of all foreign bases and an end to policing the world with ground forces.

Repeal the Davis-Bacon Act. More than $1 billion annually. (1931 US Federal Law which established the requirement for paying prevailing wages on public works projects. All federal government construction contracts, and most contracts for federally assisted construction over $2,000, must include provisions for paying workers on-site no less than the locally prevailing wages and benefits paid on similar projects.)

IRS Direct Deposit: Require the IRS to deposit fees for some services it offers (such as processing payment plans for taxpayers) to the Treasury, instead of allowing it to remain as part of its budget. $1.8 billion savings over ten years.

“However, technology has made the world smaller and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are not the barriers they used to be - as was perhaps best demonstrated when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.”

This cuts both ways. We don’t need to maintain foreign bases manned with hundreds of thousands of personnel to strike anywhere in the world. Carrier groups can keep us in range of any of our potential enemies. ICBMs and B2s give us striking range from our own territories to anywhere on the planet. Drones piloted from Edwards can hunt down terrorists anywhere, and can be logistically supported from very small Naval ships.

Boots on the ground is expensive knee-jerk political correctness, pretending populations that support terrorists will “like” us if we meet them on a level playing field mano a mano rather than bomb them into the stone age from a distance. We need to treat terrorists as representing their native countries, give their governments a chance to deal with their “criminals” themselves or face our full wrath as though the country itself had attacked us.

45
posted on 08/01/2011 1:43:27 AM PDT
by Kellis91789
(There's a reason the mascot of the Democratic Party is a jackass.)

No one is mentioning what illegals aliens are costing us [from a recent email]:

It's easy to dismiss individual programs that benefit non-citizens until they're put together and this picture emerges. Someone did a lot of research to put together all of this data. [the CNN links don't seem to be working at this time; sorry; I'm sure they can be verified]

Often these programs are buried within other programs making them difficult to find.

You think the war in Iraq is costing us too much? Boy, was I confused. I have been hammered with the propaganda that it is the Iraq war and the war on terror that is bankrupting us. I now find that to be ridiculous.

I hope the following 14 reasons are forwarded over and over again until they are read so many times that the reader gets sick of reading them. I also have included the URL's for verification of all the following facts...

A lot of those on government assistance would be the ones losing their money, I think. And we all know what a sense of entitlement, and a loss of your check, can mean to your “riot/looting” tendency. ;-)

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